An Irken palace guard ready for his duties.
An Irken palace guard.
Once formerly the slave drivers on planets conquered for the Irken Empre, the palace guards are charged with guarding the Irken Imperial Palace and many rooms within it, such as the armory, from intruders, making them similar to the Queen's Guard in London, England on Earth, and the palace guards of Gyeongbokgung, in Seoul, a city in South Korea on Earth (the latter's polearm-like weapons resemble the Irken guards' spears). They also have rooms within the palace as well. They are armed with shock spears; however, these weapons are now more conventionally used as slashing and stabbing weapons than shocking weapons, with a built-in concentrated-energy blaster for easy kills. They may also be used to escort re-encoded Irkens to their new job; for example, two guards are seen leading ex-Tallest Purple to Shloogorgh's Flavor Monster after being found guilty of crimes against Irkenkind. They also protect the Royal Family in case of a frontal assault on the palace, again using their spears as more conventional weapons.
All the guards are on constant duty except during the morning, mealtimes and banquets, during occasional breaks, and during the night. However, some of the guards occasionally shirk their duties to play with the royal smeets from time to time, and they were present during their births. There is no "changing of the guard" ceremony. In cases of frontal assaults on the palace, a powerful force field is activated around the palace, protecting even the guards from unprovoked attack (though they can still use their weapons).